CALL FOR PAPERS
The 25th Biennial Conference of the Association for the Advancement of Dutch American Studies
The Association for the Advancement of Dutch American Studies (AADAS) invites submissions for papers to be presented at its 25th biennial conference, to be held at Central College in Pella, Iowa, June 23-26 (Wed.-Sat.), 2027.
As an organization made up of both academics and the general public, AADAS welcomes a variety of proposals related to the theme below.
Conference Theme: Fifty Years…Still More Stories to Tell
To celebrate 50 years of AADAS, the board is excited to present a broad theme with the goal of discovering new topics, examining familiar topics from a unique perspective, and encouraging first-time presenters to join us in exploring Dutch America.
After 25 biennial conferences, there are still areas of Dutch-American studies which have not received much attention: stories from or about people, places, and organizations heretofore untold at AADAS and stories which explore areas of study outside of the more typically-represented history, geography, and linguistics. We encourage the submission of stories that expand our understanding of Dutch America and deepen our understanding of Dutch Americans’ impact and legacy in North America.
Potential Stories To Consider Include:
- Stories of Community: How did Dutch communities develop or how have they been maintained? Potential topics might include the study of a particular Dutch community or the discussion of how communities relate(d) to one another.
- Stories of Migration: What was the Dutch migration experience? This might include memoirs, immigrant experiences, family and community histories.
- Stories of Dutch Americans’ Endeavors: How have Dutch Americans, either individually or collectively, impacted a variety of fields? Examples might include: agriculture, business and industry, education, healthcare, law, literature, or the media.
- Stories of Dutch American Identity: What does it mean to be Dutch in North America and/or how has that meaning changed? Potential topics include culture, ethnography, communal study, cultural festivals, or religious developments.
- Stories from Diverse Voices: Are there voices within the Dutch-American community that have not been heard from yet or not enough? This might include women, youth, the working class, religious groups other than CRC or RCA, Dutch colonial immigrants or communities, other marginalized groups, dissenters, or outsider views of Dutch immigrants or communities.
The list above is not intended to be exhaustive but to serve as a starting point for considering ways to explore the story of the Dutch in North America. We welcome presentations from the general public, as well as scholars from a variety of disciplines. Other proposals on topics related to Dutch migration or Dutch in North America will also be considered.
We invite abstracts for 30-minute presentations (20 minutes + 10 minutes for questions).
Please submit abstracts of no more than 250 words and a brief CV or resume to AADAS President, Lisa Jaarsma Zylstra at zylstrabrianlisa@gmail.com by February 1, 2027. Proposals will be evaluated by a subcommittee of the AADAS board. In keeping with AADAS’ typical practice, presenters will have the opportunity for their work to be published in a post-conference edited collection.
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Call for Papers: Who is Dutch in North America?
The Association for the Advancement of Dutch American Studies will be hosting its 24th bi-annual conference on June 29 – July 1, 2023 at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Illinois.
For this conference, we seek papers that consider the role of identity and belonging in the history of Dutch America. How have Dutch Americans come together in different places and different times, to nurture and express shared identity? How have they formed associations and institutions that reflect these identities? How has gender, geography, ethnic festivals, and published literature shaped who belongs to the group? The association would be pleased to receive paper proposals on the connections between Dutch Americans and Dutch Canadians, and between Dutch Americans and other ethnic groups in the United States. Papers and panels on other topics will also be considered.
If you would like to present a paper at this conference, please send a 1-page CV and a 250-word abstract describing your topic to Michael Douma, the President of AADAS, at michaeljdouma@gmail.com, sometime before January 15th, 2023. A committee of the association’s board will then decide on papers to accept for the event.
An Interview with Jane Griffioen
The Association for the Advancement of Dutch American Studies invites you to:
An Interview with Jane Griffioen, author of
London Street, A Memoir
Zoom webinar
Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2021
12:00 pm EST
Within a Dutch enclave already removed from the larger world, Janie’s family is further isolated and odd. Janie struggles within the tight-knit community to understand the secrets and events involving her family. She knows the line her father draws between the holy and the sinful. His boundaries and rigid belief system nearly destroy the very family they were meant to protect. Persistent rumors and shunning by church members add to Janie’s heartache and confusion. Her endurance to preserve a loving relationship with her family is an intimate story of triumph over community bigotry and religious zeal gone too far.
Author: Jane Griffioen grew up in a Dutch enclave in Grand Rapids, Michigan, graduated from Calvin College with majors in Theology and English.
Interviewers: Michael Douma and Mary Risseuw, board members of the Association for the Advancement of Dutch American Studies
2022 AADAS Emigration and Ancestry Tour
AADAS Emigration and Ancestry Tour, April 27- May 10, 2022
At the 2017 conference in Fulton, members wanted to give AADAS more visibility, especially in non-conference years. The board appointed a committee to look at the feasibility of organizing a trip to the Netherlands. It recommended an emigration and ancestry tour, a relatively empty niche in Dutch tourism, despite the growing interest in the subject. The board approved the idea and appointed Henk Aay and Mary Risseeuw to organize the tour. Witte travel in Grand Rapids will handle the group flight, land transportation, and hotels and will soon produce a brochure for the tour from the text that Mary and Henk will write. The tour group will stay in just two hotels, one in the east in Zwolle, and one in the southwest, in Dordrecht. We are arranging conversations over lunch with people from the areas we are visiting who have relatives/friends overseas. We are trying hard to keep the price around $4500 per person (including air and ground transportation, accommodations, tour guides, daily breakfasts, five lunches and several group dinners, but not including personal travel and other meals).
Here is a tentative itinerary for the tour, April 27- May 9, 2022.
Day 1 Departure: Chicago to A’dam
Day 2 A’dam to Open Air Museum, Arnhem (guide) then to hotel in Zwolle; group supper
Day 3 Friesland tour (guide, Dr. Annemieke Galema); Start in Leeuwarden (talk), tour coastal municipalities; lunch: Zwarte Haan (guests)
Day 4 Groningen tour through Hogeland (guide from University of Groningen) with possible stops in Warfum’s open air museum (guide); Verhildersum (lunch, guests), and Ulrum (Secession site)
Day 5 Open Day
Day 6 Achterhoek, Gelderland Tour (Winterswijk, etc., guides); Lunch (guests); dodenherdenking
Day 7 Open Day, Liberation Day-public holiday
Day 8 Catholic Migration from Noord Brabant led by Dr. Hans Krabbendam; start in Nijmegen, Catholic Archive (talk); lunch in Uden (guests); then to second hotel in Dordrecht
Day 9 The Hague: National Archive; Lunch; Antwerp: Red Star Line Museum (guide)
Day 10 Rotterdam: Maritiem Museum (guide); Lunch; Holland America Line Quay
Day 11 Zeeuws Vlaanderen (guides, lunch/guests); tour and visit a number of villages (e.g. Oostburg, Terneuzen, Cadzand, etc.); possible return via Walcheren
Day 12 Open Day; Group Supper
Day 13 Return: A’dam to Chicago
Optional Extension for Visits to places of family history
Optional Extension for Visits to places of family history
Contact Mary Risseeuw with Questions and to Sign-Up (mrisseeuw@yahoo.com),
Membership Renewal
Be a member of AADAS and receive the following benefits:
- Receive the biannual Newsletter, the official organ of the Association, which keeps members informed of recent archival acquisitions, new research materials and methods, and members’ activities
- Receive a book containing selected papers of the biennial conferences
- Receive a “members’ rate” for conference registrations
There are two ways to be a member. You can download the form, print it out, and mail it with a check or money order to:
AADAS
C/O Joint Archives of Holland
Hope College
PO BOX 9000
Holland, MI 49422-9000
Or you can register online via PayPal.
If you have any questions before signing up, please contact us.
Membership Letter
TO: AADAS Membership
FROM: David Zwart, AADAS Treasurer
DATE: January 16, 2017
SUBJECT: Treasurer’s Report
I wanted to write a quick update on the financial position of the association and some exciting new initiatives.
First, our balance at the end of 2016 was strong. The board decided to move the money to a West Michigan bank after many years using the accounting services at Calvin College. Our biggest expense is generally the publication and distribution of the conference proceedings. We also use the membership funds to print and distribute the newsletter and various other office supplies.
The board also authorized using funds to develop a new website. We paid a one-time fee to design the site and now pay a hosting fee. It is a work in progress but should serve us for years to come. We thank Yvette Hoitink for her service to get the first website going and keeping it updated for many years. The the old site needed major updating so the board decided to move it to a new web host and platform.
Finally, with the updated website we also created an account to accept online payments. We use the service PayPal which charges a fee for each use. It will provide simple way to pay membership fees, particularly for our international members. We still gladly accept mailed checks and membership forms.
The board looks forward to your continuing support of the work of the association by renewing your membership.
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To encourage the involvement of young researchers, students get a discount membership for only $15 per year.
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AADAS is a meeting ground for people interested in the history, life, and culture of the Dutch in North America.
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AADAS publishes and distributes information about the development of religious and governmental institutions, industry, science and the arts, education, and North American Netherlandic relations.
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AADAS encourages research and nurtures a continuing interest in the history, life, and culture of the Dutch in North America
dutch-americans.org 